This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
Reviewed by Jenny Banks
Silvia Shute is in a spot of bother. She’s currently in Coma Suite Number 5, following a nasty fall from a balcony, an accident that has a question mark hovering close by. Why is Silvia, a mother, wife, friend, sister and lover, there? Who exactly is Silvia Shute?
Oh Dear Silvia was a truly unique novel. I’ve never before read a book in which the central protagonist doesn’t speak, or hold any communication with another person, as they lie comatose. It’s a brilliant scenario, and one that Dawn French executes with panache. Each family member or friend who visits Silvia is captured through an inimitable personality. There’s ex-husband Ed, downtrodden, kind and wondering what happened to the wife he married, the woman who threw pregnant daughter, Cassie and troubled son, Jamie out of the family home. Unfortunately, there’s Cat, a manipulative, monstrous woman who has her claws into Silvia. She hates everyone and in turn is detested, not least by Jo, bonkers, well-meaning big sister to Silvia. Finally there’s Nurse Winnie, who is praying and hoping for a miracle and Silvia’s gossip-mongering cleaning lady, Tia. Although Silvia is the main character, the assorted motley family members and friends that crowd around her bed are made just as, if not more, important. Dawn French creates a kaleidoscope of incredibly vivid and colourful characters, through which the novel is played out.
Each chapter features a different character visiting Silvia, and contributing in revealing the kind of person Silvia has become. It is clear that each visitor has a different take on the woman lying in a coma, and you never quite know which Silvia, or which visitor’s account, to trust. Oh Dear Silvia is certainly a novel as eclectic in its characters as in the topics it touches on. It is clear that Dawn French has researched many areas in making Oh Dear Silvia authentic, such as medical terminology and the experiences of being a soldier in Afghanistan.
As could be hoped for from Dawn French, Oh Dear Silvia was a very funny novel. The situations that crop up in Coma Suite Number 5, the majority being the brainchild of Jo, are unbelievable and brilliant, told in a modest way that makes it all the more humorous. They are probably scenarios that shouldn’t occur in the presence of a coma patient. Oh Dear Silvia, however, is by turns also very poignant and moving, touching on guilt, forgiveness, compassion and love. The book frequently considers the hidden thoughts and repressed feelings that you can only confront someone about when they can’t reply. Every chapter asked another question of exactly who is the person lying in Coma Suite Number 5?
Dawn French’s second novel is an original, funny and touching book about family, love and how people can constantly surprise you, even when comatose.
8/10